H-ISAC TLP Green Daily Coronavirus Update January 26, 2021

Headlines

• The number of new US coronavirus cases reported over the past seven days is 22% lower than a week ago and the seven-day average has been trending down for 10 days, according to an analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University, with deaths also lower than a week ago - by about 7% - but January is on track to be country’s Covid-19’s deadliest month.
• An Associated Press analysis of federal hospital data shows that since November, the share of US hospitals nearing the breaking point has doubled, and that more than 40% of Americans now live in areas running out of ICU space, and only 15% of beds are still available.
• More than 22.7 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered in the US, according to data published Monday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with nearly 6% of the US population - more than 19 million people – having received at least one dose, and about 3.3 million people fully vaccinated.
• Fewer than 0.01% of people who received Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine have contracted the virus more than a week after receiving the second dose, HMO Maccabi, a leading Israeli healthcare provider, said on Monday.
• President Joe Biden said today he expects anyone who wants a vaccine to be able to get one by the spring and upped his vaccination goal for his first 100 days in office to 1.5 million shots a day, but Dr. David Kessler, co-chair of the White House’s COVID-19 task force, pushed back the timeline in which most Americans can expect to get vaccinated, predicting "We're not going to have everyone vaccinated in April, in May, right?  Just not gonna happen," adding "We got to get over 65, essential workers.   I think this is going to take us into the fall.  We got to get there before next winter, and one of the things I care about very honestly, is we can't do this again.”
• Scaling up manufacturing of Covid-19 vaccines can’t be done overnight without sacrificing quality, officials from vaccine makers Pfizer and Moderna said Monday.
• A study of NFL players found that coronavirus transmission is still possible even if exposure didn’t surpass 15 total minutes within six feet, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, findings that put into question the agency’s previous guidance on community exposure, which it defines as having close contact with an individual who is confirmed or suspected to have COVID-19.
• Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on Monday that wearing two masks is likely more effective to stop the spread of Covid-19.
• California added 27,007 cases to its Covid-19 count on Monday, according to the state Department of Public Health, marking the first full week of fewer than 30,000 cases each day since early December, and the state’s number of deaths reported was well below the 14-day average.
• New York is at the end of its “post-holiday spike” and could begin rolling back restrictions on some businesses as early as this week if the trends continue, Governor Andrew Cuomo said this afternoon.
• President Joe Biden will require all international travelers coming from overseas, including US citizens, to “provide proof of a negative test within three days of travel to airlines prior to departure.”
• The European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, recommended on Monday restricting nonessential travel in a bid to curb the spread of new more contagious variants of the coronavirus, and at the same time, the commission’s proposal aims to prevent blanket border closures, which would obstruct trade and the movement of cross-border workers.
• British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Monday the idea of quarantining people arriving into the country in hotels for 10 days as a Covid-19 measure is “definitely” being “looked at,” and said people “mustn’t assume” that schools will be closed until Easter, following recent media reports, warning decisions are dependent on Covid-19 infection rates.
• France's National Academy of Medicine is advising that people keep quiet and don’t talk on public transportation - and whenever social distancing is not possible - to help stop the spread of COVID-19, with a recent study by researchers at the University of Cambridge and Imperial College London finding that when people are in a poorly ventilated space, a prolonged conversation is far more likely to spread respiratory droplets carrying the virus than a short cough.
• The S&P 500 rose slightly on Monday as investors prepared for a busy week of earnings featuring reports from the largest tech companies, gaining 0.1%, supported by utilities and real estate, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq traded 0.4% higher after jumping to an all-time high earlier in the day, and the Dow Jones, less susceptible to changes in technology shares, shed more than 80 points.
• He’s been in office for less than a week, but President Joe Biden is already facing calls to use his new power to prevent people from losing their electricity, gas or water, with some of his allies in Congress wanting the federal government to stop power companies, water providers and other utilities from shutting off service for failure to pay bills to help Americans struggling during the pandemic.
• Millions of Americans are still in stimulus check limbo after a confusing first effort to distribute the $600 direct payments, with individuals who received a “Payment status not available message” from the IRS or who are unsure of their check status recommended to review their eligibility with the agency and file their taxes as soon as possible.
• At least 225 million full-time jobs disappeared worldwide last year because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report published Monday by the International Labor Organization, losses four times worse than those of the global financial crisis in 2009.
• The World Health Organization cited new economic research during a press conference Monday, which warns that vaccine nationalism could cost high-income countries $4.5 trillion, and while universal vaccination may make it feel as though life is getting back to normal in wealthy countries, global trade will suffer if poorer nations still have active COVID-19 transmissions, according to research from the International Chamber of Commerce.
• Beginning Wednesday, the White House will hold regular briefings “for the foreseeable future” to update the public on the federal response to the coronavirus, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Monday.

View the entire report under Key Resources.